South African rugby media lash brainless Springboks after All Blacks hiding

The South African rugby media hammered the flawed tactical and brainless approach of the world champion Springboks in their 33-16 defeat against the All Blacks at Ellis Park.

South African rugby media reaction to Springboks defeat v the All Blacks

There could be no arguments with a five-tries to one All Blacks win.

The manner of the defeat was embarrassing for a team that has dominated the sport in the past six years. The naivety of the world champion Boks against a team into just its fourth Test under coach Dave Rennie stunned the South Africa media, who have told the story of every high of these Boks since the 2019 World Cup triumph.

There was consensus that the Boks lost because they relied exclusively on bullish brute force, wasted dominance, butchered opportunities and stopped thinking. The attacking game that has characterised so many of the 33 wins from 37 matches preceding Saturday’s Test against the All Blacks was absent.

Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus got it wrong tactically and his players were as culpable with their inaccuracy, lack of execution and failure to adapt during the game.

Cape Town is now a must-win Test for the Boks. Power alone will not be enough for the Springboks.

The Boks were sucker punched into a one-dimensional fist fight and while they landed more punches, they never landed a knock out blow. This was an emphatic points win for an All Blacks team that played with the composure of a champion team.

The Springboks had the All Blacks physically beaten for 55 minutes at Ellis Park, but New Zealand had the rugby intelligence, defensive courage and attacking accuracy to turn pressure into a thumping 33-16 victory.

Gavin Rich wrote for SuperSport that the All Blacks profited from sustained Springbok inaccuracy. The Boks dominated the collisions, territory and scrums, but New Zealand survived and then punished them. Rich felt the 17-point margin flattered the visitors, but five tries to one could not be disputed.

Brenden Nel’s SuperSport assessment was even more brutal. He called the collapse embarrassing after the Boks had controlled the opening 55 minutes. Rassie Erasmus provided the headline: “We got a hiding.” The scoreboard, said Erasmus, was ugly.

Craig Ray wrote in Daily Maverick that this may have been the worst Springbok performance of the Erasmus era. South Africa turned over possession 23 times, lost the second half 21-3 and finished the match in disarray with Marco van Staden and Cobus Reinach in the sin bin.

Jon Cardinelli was uncompromising in Rugby365. He described the Springbok performance as blunt and brainless, in stark contrast to the problem-solving that has defined Erasmus’s champions. This was not simply a bad night. It was an uncharacteristic failure to think through a Test match.

Sport24/News24 called it a five-try demolition of wasteful Springboks. Khanyiso Tshwaku wrote that the All Blacks threw punches to which the Boks had no response, while Rob Houwing’s ratings lamented that Jasper Wiese deserved better than the “butterfingers” around him.

SA Rugby Magazine highlighted how the All Blacks won the technical contests without winning the collisions. They won the turnover count 14-5, tackled at 87 percent and used a legal stripping tactic that Erasmus admitted had surprised his team.

The Sunday Times identified one scrum as the turning point. The Boks rejected the three points that would have made it 19-all, demanded another scrum and were penalised. David Isaacson’s summation was savage: the Boks had the brawn, but not the brains.

Keo.co.za celebrated brave and bright All Blacks who survived the heavy bag and then thrived on the speed ball. The Boks brought power without precision. New Zealand brought both precision and belief.

That was the South African media consensus.

The Springboks did not lose because they were physically inferior. They lost because they wasted dominance, butchered opportunities and stopped thinking.

The All Blacks never stopped believing.

Cape Town is now a must-win Test for the Boks. Power alone will not be enough.